4 ms·

This is sad. Not that they accept girls, but that the Girl Scouts apparently suck so much at understanding their audience. Fallout from this would probably res

by MR4D 9y ago

This is sad. Not that they accept girls, but that the Girl Scouts apparently suck so much at understanding their audience. Fallout from this would probably result in either 1) the Girl Scouts becoming much better at satisfying their target audience or 2) the Girl Scouts essentially becoming an irrelevant organization. I hope the first, but the latter looks more likely. They’ve hidden behind cookie sales for years, and outside that, I can’t tell you one thing that they do.

squidbot 9y ago
Girl Scouts is actually a terrific organization in a lot of ways, one thing it's not great at is marketing and leadership support. On top of that We are a family of scouts and scout leaders, and my wife and I both did leadership for our daughters Girl Scout troop. I am also a leader in my sons Cub Scout pack. Girl Scouts has been fundamentally more inclusive and secular than Boy Scouts. A scout is just a scout in Girl Scouts, no matter their gender or religious identity. The program for the girls has adapted well over time and has some great educational components across all types of activities. There is a real focus on getting the girls inspired by STEM. Our local council sponsored and provided materials and funds for First Lego League, and several troops went on to state finals. They hold science fairs, have great camp grounds (and summer camps) and have fantastic outdoor education from both an environmental and sports/leisure aspect. Unfortunately, they also lack funds, so most of the support goes to the girls. Finding and maintaining good adult leaders and volunteers has become increasingly difficult, and adult leadership is what really makes for a good Girl Scout experience, especially when the girls are younger. And the fewer good leaders, the fewer girls who participate, and as a result fewer funds for the organization so spread around. I was in a "scouting family" when I was a kid, and the level of engagement of the adults back then was much better than today. For whatever reason people are "too busy" these to volunteer for something that benefits their kids, and often seem to want to use scouts as baby sitting :( Also, I understand your sentiment on the cookies, but a surprising amount of the money goes back to the troop and to the girls in the form of rewards and scholarships. In our troop we had several girls who were super motivated to sell as it was the only way for their families to afford summer camp (you'd get if I remember correctly, 10% of your sales as money towards camp) and most of these girls would hustle enough to make all they needed to fully fund camp, which was $300-400. Yeah there's some profit for the cookie company, but I think it's something like 50% goes back to Girl Scouts (the org, the troop and the individual girls.)
mikestew 9y ago
They’ve hidden behind cookie sales for years, and outside that, I can’t tell you one thing that they do. You think Boy Scouts, you think Eagle scouts, tying knots, and camping. Outdoorsy, can-do, and always prepared. The animal shelter at which I volunteer has benefitted from the multiple Eagle Scout projects that built needed equipment for us. You think Girl Scouts, you think Thin Mints. A Girl Scout could have built the agility equipment for that same animal shelter. Instead, the local GS troop did a water color wall painting. Way to go, you girls stay and decorate while the boys build useful stuff. That's a failure not only of marketing, but also of programming. "You said you don't know jack about boating, how'd you know how to tie a bowline?" "I was a Boy Scout." That's my answer to a lot of "how'd you know...?" questions. And I'll bet not a week goes by that I don't use knowledge gained from Boy Scouts. From sharpening a kitchen knife to tying a timberline hitch for an ad hoc guy line, I wonder if even a day goes by that I don't use knowledge gained from scouts. Not to mention the leadership and mental attitude aspects. I don't recall a woman ever answering "how'd you...?" with "I was a Girl Scout". Of the women I've questioned who were in Girl Scouts, I don't recall any that found it to be a particularly valuable experience. Now, that's certainly anecdotal, and most likely very dated given my age. But GSA needs better PR than "we sell cookies", and they need the programs to match. I'm neutral on BSA accepting girls, but I'm disappointed that the GSA has failed girls such that it was needed to begin with.
- op00to 9y ago
  When I think of Boy Scout leadership, I think of religious loonies who have an irrational fear of gay and transgendered scouts and leaders.
norcimo5 9y ago
oooooor 3) The Girl Scouts accepting boys in their organization. Am I the only progressive optimist in this crowd? :p
kevinconroy 9y ago
Where did you get the impression that Girl Scouts "suck so much at understanding their audience"? I'm fairly angry that someone would read that article and assume that if Boy Scouts decided to admit girls to help offset the decreasing memberships in Boy Scouts (noted in the article), that somehow that means Girl Scouts is to blame. SERIOUSLY? This is exactly the kind of sexism that girls have to deal with day in and day out. As someone who was a Boy Scout growing up, and now as a Girl Scout leader and Cub Scout leader, I find the Girl Scouts to be a much better run organization that provides a range of helpful, useful skills. I'm in favor of letting girls and boys participate in these activities and having equal access to whichever experience is best for them. So far, the Girl Scouts have done an amazing job at making me feel welcome as an adult male leader and giving me the tools that I need to support the girls in my troop. They know what they are doing, they know how to create girl-oriented programming, and they are training the next generation of female leaders. My rage as the apparent sexism aside, I also think that an individual scout's experience (girl or boy) will depend heavily on the adult leadership in their location (both district, troop/pack, and den/group). It's truly a YMMV situation.
- acty1 9y ago
  I agree that equal opportunity should be available to both, which is why I support Girl Scouts opening up their membership to boys too.

by MR4D 9y ago

squidbot 9y ago

Girl Scouts is actually a terrific organization in a lot of ways, one thing it's not great at is marketing and leadership support. On top of that We are a family of scouts and scout leaders, and my wife and I both did leadership for our daughters Girl Scout troop. I am also a leader in my sons Cub Scout pack. Girl Scouts has been fundamentally more inclusive and secular than Boy Scouts. A scout is just a scout in Girl Scouts, no matter their gender or religious identity. The program for the girls has adapted well over time and has some great educational components across all types of activities. There is a real focus on getting the girls inspired by STEM. Our local council sponsored and provided materials and funds for First Lego League, and several troops went on to state finals. They hold science fairs, have great camp grounds (and summer camps) and have fantastic outdoor education from both an environmental and sports/leisure aspect. Unfortunately, they also lack funds, so most of the support goes to the girls. Finding and maintaining good adult leaders and volunteers has become increasingly difficult, and adult leadership is what really makes for a good Girl Scout experience, especially when the girls are younger. And the fewer good leaders, the fewer girls who participate, and as a result fewer funds for the organization so spread around. I was in a "scouting family" when I was a kid, and the level of engagement of the adults back then was much better than today. For whatever reason people are "too busy" these to volunteer for something that benefits their kids, and often seem to want to use scouts as baby sitting :( Also, I understand your sentiment on the cookies, but a surprising amount of the money goes back to the troop and to the girls in the form of rewards and scholarships. In our troop we had several girls who were super motivated to sell as it was the only way for their families to afford summer camp (you'd get if I remember correctly, 10% of your sales as money towards camp) and most of these girls would hustle enough to make all they needed to fully fund camp, which was $300-400. Yeah there's some profit for the cookie company, but I think it's something like 50% goes back to Girl Scouts (the org, the troop and the individual girls.)

mikestew 9y ago

They’ve hidden behind cookie sales for years, and outside that, I can’t tell you one thing that they do. You think Boy Scouts, you think Eagle scouts, tying knots, and camping. Outdoorsy, can-do, and always prepared. The animal shelter at which I volunteer has benefitted from the multiple Eagle Scout projects that built needed equipment for us. You think Girl Scouts, you think Thin Mints. A Girl Scout could have built the agility equipment for that same animal shelter. Instead, the local GS troop did a water color wall painting. Way to go, you girls stay and decorate while the boys build useful stuff. That's a failure not only of marketing, but also of programming. "You said you don't know jack about boating, how'd you know how to tie a bowline?" "I was a Boy Scout." That's my answer to a lot of "how'd you know...?" questions. And I'll bet not a week goes by that I don't use knowledge gained from Boy Scouts. From sharpening a kitchen knife to tying a timberline hitch for an ad hoc guy line, I wonder if even a day goes by that I don't use knowledge gained from scouts. Not to mention the leadership and mental attitude aspects. I don't recall a woman ever answering "how'd you...?" with "I was a Girl Scout". Of the women I've questioned who were in Girl Scouts, I don't recall any that found it to be a particularly valuable experience. Now, that's certainly anecdotal, and most likely very dated given my age. But GSA needs better PR than "we sell cookies", and they need the programs to match. I'm neutral on BSA accepting girls, but I'm disappointed that the GSA has failed girls such that it was needed to begin with.

op00to 9y ago
When I think of Boy Scout leadership, I think of religious loonies who have an irrational fear of gay and transgendered scouts and leaders.

norcimo5 9y ago

oooooor 3) The Girl Scouts accepting boys in their organization. Am I the only progressive optimist in this crowd? :p

kevinconroy 9y ago

Where did you get the impression that Girl Scouts "suck so much at understanding their audience"? I'm fairly angry that someone would read that article and assume that if Boy Scouts decided to admit girls to help offset the decreasing memberships in Boy Scouts (noted in the article), that somehow that means Girl Scouts is to blame. SERIOUSLY? This is exactly the kind of sexism that girls have to deal with day in and day out. As someone who was a Boy Scout growing up, and now as a Girl Scout leader and Cub Scout leader, I find the Girl Scouts to be a much better run organization that provides a range of helpful, useful skills. I'm in favor of letting girls and boys participate in these activities and having equal access to whichever experience is best for them. So far, the Girl Scouts have done an amazing job at making me feel welcome as an adult male leader and giving me the tools that I need to support the girls in my troop. They know what they are doing, they know how to create girl-oriented programming, and they are training the next generation of female leaders. My rage as the apparent sexism aside, I also think that an individual scout's experience (girl or boy) will depend heavily on the adult leadership in their location (both district, troop/pack, and den/group). It's truly a YMMV situation.

acty1 9y ago
I agree that equal opportunity should be available to both, which is why I support Girl Scouts opening up their membership to boys too.